Published 4:00 am, Monday, March 14, 2005

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slug: COX-OVERCLASSIFY03
WASHINGTON... Rep. Henry A. Waxman,D-Ca., questions a witness Wednesday, March 2, 2005, at a House hearing on the overclassification of government documents. "The American people understand that some information must be kept secret to protect the public safety," Waxman said. "But when the government systematically hides information from the public, government stops belonging to the people." (Photo by Rick McKay/Washington Bureau) Ran on: 03-14-2005
Rep. Henry Waxman says Barry Bonds &quo;may come before us at some future hearing.&quo; Ran on: 03-14-2005
Rep. Henry Waxman says Barry Bonds &quo;may come before us at some future hearing.&quo; less

Photo by Rick McKay/Washington Bureau
slug: COX-OVERCLASSIFY03
WASHINGTON... Rep. Henry A. Waxman,D-Ca., questions a witness Wednesday, March 2, 2005, at a House hearing on the overclassification of ... more

2005-03-14 04:00:00 PDT Washington -- House lawmakers investigating illegal steroid use in baseball said Sunday they have the votes to hold several current and former major-league players and two top baseball officials in contempt of Congress -- which could lead to fines or prison time -- if they refuse to appear at a hearing this week.

House Government Reform Committee Chairman Tom Davis, R-Va., suggested Congress could also play hardball with the league and the players union by revoking baseball's antitrust exemption and its tax breaks if they continue to fight the subpoenas of the players.

However, Davis said he is negotiating with baseball and may allow one player to be excused from the hearing Thursday. A committee source said New York Yankees slugger Jason Giambi might avoid appearing if the Justice Department believes his testimony could hamper the ongoing BALCO investigation.

If the players and two top league officials fail to appear, the committee plans to vote Thursday to hold them in contempt, with a full House vote as early as Friday. Davis said the contempt of Congress resolution would pass by a wide margin, backed by at least 350 to 375 of the House's 435 members.

"These people are not above the law," Davis said Sunday on NBC's "Meet the Press." "They may fly in private planes and make millions of dollars and be on baseball cards, but a subpoena is exactly what it says it is. They have to appear."

"He may come before us at some future hearing," Waxman said. "This may not be the last hearing we hold on this subject."

Representatives of the league and the players union infuriated lawmakers last week when they challenged Congress' authority to issue subpoenas, saying that the committee has no jurisdiction over the steroid issue and that the subpoenas infringe on the privacy of both the players and the league.

Baseball officials have since softened their tone and agreed to negotiate over the witness list for Thursday's hearing.

Lawmakers clearly believe they have the stronger hand, and many legal scholars believe the courts likely would uphold Congress' power to subpoena the witnesses as part of its oversight role.

If the House voted to cite the players or league officials, the matter would be referred to a U.S. attorney, who could convene a grand jury to pursue prosecution. Contempt of Congress is punishable by up to a year in prison and a $1,000 fine.

Lawmakers are convinced players and league officials will ultimately back down and appear before the panel to avoid prosecution and the potential for jail time.

In addition to the players, Sandy Alderson, vice president of baseball operations for the league and the former general manager of the Oakland A's, and San Diego Padres general manager Kevin Towers could face citations for contempt if they fail to appear. Only players union head Don Fehr and the league's point man on steroids, Rob Manfred, have told the panel they will testify.

Critics have accused the committee of grandstanding, and one lawmaker on the panel has questioned whether issuing subpoenas was more of a publicity stunt than a serious exercise in oversight.

"To spend our time calling seven baseball players -- maybe I've missed something, but is this the most important issue in the United States today?" Rep. Paul Kanjorski, D-Pa., told the Philadelphia Inquirer last week. "It doesn't warrant even a committee hearing, no less the issuing of subpoenas."

But Davis and Waxman respond that steroid abuse in baseball not only violates federal law -- the Controlled Substances Act of 1991 -- but poses a growing health risk to college and high school athletes who are turning to performance-enhancing drugs.

"It is a public health crisis, and our testimony from medical experts is going to show this," Davis said. "We have the parents of kids who have used steroids and committed suicide. Over a half a million youth are using steroids, and these major-league players are their idols."

The hearing presents a no-win situation for the players. Those who acknowledge under oath using steroids would not only place themselves in legal jeopardy -- although steroid use is rarely prosecuted -- but also risk invalidating multimillion-dollar contracts with their teams.

But if they appear before the House panel and assert their Fifth Amendment right against self-incrimination, it would widely be seen as an acknowledgement that they used illegal performance-enhancing drugs.

Canseco, who has admitted injecting steroids and in his recent book accused McGwire and other former teammates of steroid use, appears to be the only witness eager to testify. In an appearance on ABC's "This Week" Sunday, he said the players union and the league had conspired to prevent the truth from coming out about widespread steroid use.

"What you're seeing right now is a collusion between Major League Baseball and the players," Canseco said. "They're basically telling Congress, you don't belong in this issue, which is completely wrong."

Although lawmakers often threaten to cite witnesses for contempt of Congress to compel them to testify, such resolutions are rare.

The last high-ranking official to be cited for contempt was EPA administrator Anne Gorsuch in 1982 after she refused to produce documents about Superfund cleanups requested by Energy and Commerce Committee Chairman John Dingell, D-Mich. The prosecution was eventually stopped when the White House agreed to grant the committee access to the documents.

Davis said Sunday he is confident that players and league officials will show up Thursday.

But he warned that if they are unwilling to cooperate, the House could take another look at the league's antitrust exemption, which protects Major League Baseball's status as a monopoly, and its tax breaks -- including one that allows teams to write off players as depreciable assets. Critics of the league have long urged Congress to revoke the provisions.

"I don't think we're there yet," Davis said. "But ultimately when you push this out, they not only enjoy antitrust exemptions, they enjoy a lot of tax exemptions in terms of depreciation of players and so on. They're advantageous to the business of baseball."

Some have questioned why the congressional committee hasn't called Bonds, who told a federal grand jury he used substances federal officials believe to be steroids, according to a Chronicle report.

Lawmakers suggested on Sunday that Bonds' appearance before the grand jury was one of the reasons he was not subpoenaed to testify.

"There are a lot of reasons why people are on or off the list, including the BALCO investigation in San Francisco, but including the fact that we didn't want to make this about one player," Davis said. "You bring Bonds in, it's going to be just about Barry Bonds. It's more widespread than that."

The investigation into the Bay Area Laboratory Co-Operative in Burlingame led to charges against its founder, Victor Conte, and three other men that they illegally distributed steroids to elite athletes. All four men have pleaded not guilty and are free on bail.

Former and current players subpoenaed to testify

Jose Canseco

Mark McGwire

Rafael Palmeiro

Frank Thomas

Curt Schilling

Sammy Sosa

Jason Giambi

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